[tmaly]

I remember my first trip to the Philippines back in 2003. I saw these little children about the age of 5 wandering around at night trying to sell these little flowers. I ended up giving them some food instead of money as any money would be taken from them.

Again on a recent trip this year, I met two young children that were selling shells on an island near the food market. They should have been in school, but they were not. There has been an effort by the government to get all children in larger cities to attend school. The rural areas still have plenty of children who never see a classroom.

I think the US is very far from developing countries. Yes I have seen some extreme poverty in the mountains of West Virginia, but nothing like the Philippines.